Ecuador: Report, conflict between Shuar tribe and govt. causing psychological damage

Signs of lasting trauma in people evicted to make way for giant mine in Ecuador

theguardian.com / Kimberley Brown reported, battles with the government and army over land and mining rights has caused indigenous Shuar people long-term psychological damage, report says

Months after they were evicted from their homes to make way for a mine, almost half the population of an Ecuadorian village is suffering from psychological damage, experts have said.

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Psychiatrists found 42% of the indigenous Shuar people of Tsuntsuim village suffering from mental health problems and trauma. Many of the villagers had been involved in violent confrontations with Ecuador’s military as they were removed from their homes.

The mental ordeal has manifested itself in depression, severe headaches, insomnia, tremors and tachycardia (a racing heart rate). Trauma caused by the displacement and anxiety about what would happen to them next were the main triggers for these symptoms, said the authors of the report, which was released by a group of doctors, psychiatrists and indigenous rights activists. Read Article